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‘As to his comment that ‘the party acts for the best interests of the working man’ I would respond ‘not in a long time’.’

‘His espousal of State action, representing the best collective nature of the whole community, was to act for the benefit of all.’

‘If you can't have a democratically accountable administration that acts for the welfare of the citizens, then an international event for which the country has to clean up its act is the next best thing.’

‘I have more faith in the ability of the general public to act for the greater good in the face of a crisis.’

‘Napoleon recognized his abilities, promoting him to positions where he could act for the benefit of French science and education.’

‘‘He was not acting for personal gain or to cover dishonesty,’ he said.’

take action, take steps, take measures, take the initiative, move, make a move, react, do something, proceed, go ahead

‘I understand you act for the airline, and there was a dispute there some time ago about drug and alcohol testing.’

‘The purchaser was a solicitor acting on behalf of a client.’

‘Solicitors acting on behalf of a number of officers have written to cinemas and halls pointing out that they may be liable to action should the film be found to be defamatory.’

‘At the end of August solicitors acting on behalf of Mr King launched a claim for damages at London's High Court.’

‘After the hearing, Holt, who acts for the twins, said: ‘The award will make a very significant difference to the twins' quality of life.’’

‘Our back pages are dominated by celebrity drivel spun by agents acting for a handful of English superstars.’

‘For the last two years its leader, who allegedly murdered an RUC officer, has claimed to act for the community.’

‘The barrister acting for the community council is now objecting to the inspector's decision.’

‘It is about time the party stopped its pretence of acting on behalf of all the people when the only people it represents are the well off, big business and the privileged.’

‘He also acted for the Ukraine Communist Party and the Ukraine Socialist Party.’

‘A Dublin-based firm of solicitors are acting on behalf of the parents of over 100 children with autism.’

‘Solicitors acting on behalf of a double murder suspect are to take an appeal against his extradition to the Dutch High Court in The Hague.’

‘They were acting for a local property developer with links to the gypsy community and last month the field became a caravan site.’

‘They will now have to wait to hear whether solicitors acting on behalf of the accused man ask for a second post-mortem examination.’

‘According to the new regulations, a representative who acts on behalf of visa-seekers must be authorised and could be an immigration consultant with good standing in the Canadian Society of Immigration Consultants.’

‘The firearms officer is being represented by the Scottish Police Federation, which acts on behalf of rank-and-file police.’

‘As such, unions were represented in local and national government and sought to act for the community.’

‘The first stages of a High Court hearing will be heard later this month involving a Dublin law firm acting on behalf of up to 12 individual clients.’

‘We act on behalf of very high-profile clients who would, I consider, find a lap-dancing club deeply objectionable and offensive.’

‘Following this communication, Stone, who had acted for the purchaser in the past, made it known to Smith that he must retain his own lawyer in the matter.’

‘More than 50 acts from 32 different nations are gathering for the hot-hot-hottest of Montreal's many summer festivals.’

‘When we attend jazz, we go mostly to view the main acts - and if these don't show up, we should be refunded.’

‘While the acts from Pink Floyd to Razorlight go through their numbers in Hyde Park, another line-up of superstars will be performing on the international stage nearby.’

‘I've been trying to make a list of all the bands and musical acts that I've seen live, good and bad, big and small.’

‘Both acts performed on the Sunday of the event, Razorlight entertaining on the main stage whilst Babyshambles took to the NME / Radio 1 Stage.’

‘In November, the Afro-Cuban All Stars, one of Cuba's most prominent musical acts, planned to perform in Berkeley as part of its U.S. tour.’

‘The venue's packed programme of shows and concerts was rearranged, with some acts performing at local nightclubs, the Alhambra Theatre and the Victoria Theatre, Halifax.’

‘In the last year, countless acts from Moby to Joe Cocker via Bob Dylan have played to half-empty halls in the city.’

‘A key element of the project is a giant 10,000-seat arena capable of staging concerts by top-quality acts such as Robbie Williams and the Rolling Stones.’

‘The four winning acts announced today will perform live on Song For Europe.’

‘There will be over thirty DJs and live dance acts performing on the day.’

‘The excellent annual Foxford Christmas Concert featured a variety of local acts who performed to the highest standards.’

‘The performance kept with the theme of these awards over the years: mix Latin acts with performances with crossover appeal.’

‘The support band The Shins were very good, and the main act, Belle and Sebastian were just brilliant.’

‘Hugely respected acts from both Ireland and Wales will fill every venue, every night - and Sunday afternoon too - bringing a real festival flavour to this unmissable weekend of fun.’

‘The outdoor concert was cancelled and the various acts performed in local pubs instead.’

‘Their flamboyant style contrasted with established mournful acts on the shortlist, such as Radiohead and Coldplay.’

‘Bringing pop acts to perform with an orchestra is a good idea, but too often the symphony takes a back seat to the star.’

‘Havana Che, an eight piece Latin band, are among the headliners for the music festival, which will once again showcase the best of local talent as well as acts from all over Ireland and the UK.’

‘Meanwhile, a popular feature of the annual festival, the Carlsberg Rhythm Route, is back and will once again see some top acts perform for free in Waterford pubs and nightspots.’

‘Even before the main acts came on, adoring fans made a beeline for the stage to make sure they got as close as they could to the stars.’

‘Snow Patrol, Travis, McFly, Ronan Keating and Dannii Minogue are just some of the chart-topping acts whose performances at the live concerts will be broadcast on the night.’

‘Fifty acts from the three Prairie Provinces will be selected by a jury of industry professionals to perform in venues such as the Rev Cabaret, the Sidetrack, New City Likwid Lounge and Suburbs.’

Phrases

act of God

An instance of uncontrollable natural forces in operation.

‘the flooding was surely an act of God’

‘Some disasters are neither acts of God nor human errors; many environmental refugees are displaced by deliberate development projects.’

‘At a memorial service on Wednesday evening, school officials and church representatives said the tragedy was an incomprehensible act of God.’

‘The prevailing belief in 1930 was that an economic recession was like an earthquake or flood - an act of God that had to be endured.’

‘All reasonable people understand that acts of God, accidents, or incidents will happen that will affect the quality of drinking water.’

‘Escalator failures, too, are system failures, not acts of God.’

‘Insurance experts say very few policies cover acts of God or disasters of this type.’

‘Jack shall not be liable for interruptions caused by strikes, riots, floods, acts of God, loss of communication, or by any event beyond his control.’

‘Many people seem to believe his death was an act of God, who came to save them from their misery.’

‘Accidents are no longer acts of God but someone's fault and every reasonable step must be taken to avoid them.’

‘Natural calamities are always a tragedy and an act of God.’

‘It is inaccurate to call the tsunami an act of God, because God did not intervene to provoke the disaster.’

‘Just for starters, we'd probably see way more statistics calculating the economic destructiveness of nature's most underestimated act of God: winter.’

‘We went to the council but they said the tree was not diseased, they were not liable and what happened was an act of God.’

‘With acts of God, the events are beyond human control.’

‘Some nations are apt to believe that war is an inevitable evil, like acts of God, occurrences in accordance with laws of Nature, something utterly impersonal.’

‘This was no accident, an act of God, or a freak occurrence.’

‘The priest, though distressed by the death, believes that the death is the act of God and cannot be questioned and ‘perhaps we should love what we can't understand.’’

‘Storms and other natural disasters are just those: natural disasters and not acts of God.’

‘Both sides should just batten down the hatches, prepare for a very long 2004 and remember that miracles, or even acts of God, do happen.’

‘Because the event is an act of God, the responsibility for maintenance and repair to the road and bridge falls to the legal road tenure holder and owner - the Ministry of Forests - but the pressure to fix things is on.’

‘According to this logic, the receipt of welfare benefits due to unemployment is not regarded as a social right, but as in the Middle Ages is looked upon as an act of grace which actually runs counter to the interests of the state.’

‘A presidential pardon is an act of grace or mercy, proceeding from the power entrusted with the execution of laws, which exempts the individual, on whom it is bestowed, from punishment the courts inflict for a crime he or she committed.’

‘Furthermore, under articles 296 and 297 of the Versailles Treaty all enemy aliens lost their beneficial interests in property held in Britain as of 11 January 1920; some exceptions were made as an act of grace but not as a legal right.’

‘A pardon is an act of grace, proceeding from the power entrusted with the execution of the laws which exempts the individual, on whom it is bestowed, from the punishment the law inflicts for a crime he has committed.’

‘On the other hand, the modern view of distributive justice, largely thanks to Smith himself, is that it is the duty, and not an act of grace, for the state to try to alleviate or abolish poverty.’

catch someone in the act

Surprise someone in the process of doing something wrong.

‘the thieves were caught in the act’

‘Coun Sunderland said: ‘I want cameras which can catch them in the act and I believe people should be fined.’’

‘However, during their third attack in nine days, they were caught in the act after police set up patrols and arrested them when they stole a handbag from a 46 year-old woman.’

‘Unless nursing staff had caught him in the act then even with half-hourly or even quarter-hourly observations, that might not have altered the outcome.’

‘NEARLY 100 of North Yorkshire's most prolific offenders will be swept off the streets if they are caught in the act again.’

‘All propaganda is a sophisticated form of deception and she had been caught in the act of misdirecting the electorate.’

‘The wives find out about the plot and put in a plan of their own to catch them in the act.’

‘It's very difficult to arrest people unless we catch them in the act.’

‘Night after night I heard the same excuse from every officer, until he is caught in the act of violating the restraining order by a police officer, no arrest can be made.’

‘So he did a kamikaze attack on my fridge about 2 minutes before his bedtime and I caught him in the act and said, ‘Hey, Kitchen's CLOSED, it's time for bed.’’

‘Then, in 1993, she was caught in the act of torching a neighbor's home in Ajo, Arizona, and sentenced to 15 years in prison.’

‘They usually ask if you can identify the perpetrators and I've pointed out to them that if they arrive quickly, they'll catch them in the act.’

‘And the council warned it would step up its campaign, with new powers meaning it could take firms to court even if it has not caught them in the act of dumping.’

‘The court had heard how Frazer was caught in the act after a routine police patrol stopped the car he was driving as officers were suspicious following a spate of break ins.’

‘Our covert approach to surveillance gives us an element of surprise over our targets, often catching them in the act.’

‘A German company has sacked one of its employees for smoking at home after hiring a detective to catch him in the act.’

‘At this point, a guy suddenly came along the pathway around the bend, and caught me in the act of arguing with the cat.’

‘I followed her gaze to see Carter, who looked like he had been caught in the act of doing something wrong.’

‘The difference was that we were caught in the act so we couldn't deny it.’

‘The council also visits schools across the town to talk to children about the trouble they could get into if they were caught in the act.’

‘They return the next night after Jule realises she has left her mobile somewhere in the house, but Hardenberg surprises them and catches them in the act.’

‘After years of splitting the centre-left vote, thereby allowing the Conservatives to rule, progressives finally got their act together.’

‘It's about time the authorities, who are supposed to dispose of this rubbish, got their act together.’

‘After that, England got their act together, and going into today's game, England's overall record against Zimbabwe was 15 wins and 7 losses.’

‘And indeed in the last ten minutes, Newry, in a better late than never style, finally got their act together up front.’

‘They've got their act together again this year it looks like, after all their injuries last year.’

‘Others likely to be affected will be the language press and it is time that they got their act together.’

‘In the second half the winners got their act together and began to pass the ball well.’

‘In the second half the home side got their act together and Tommy Bolger led the way when he scored in similar fashion to Lawlor, beating two defenders before slotting home in the 65th minute.’

‘Farming organisations across Europe must get their act together to demand fairer prices from supermarkets for their members.’

‘‘All we are doing is building on the experience of those parts of the country where local authorities and the NHS have got their act together,’ he said.’

‘You need to get a grasp of the evidence, and in effect, get your act together.’

‘That is why we need to get our act together in terms of organisation and resources so people get the best possible treatment.’

‘The main reason is that women have got their act together more than men when it comes to looking after themselves.’

‘But the team got their act together in the second half and the comeback began.’

‘IT is about time York council and the race committee got their act together.’

‘St George's is still a two-star hospital which shows they haven't got their act together.’

‘The majority of places will have got their act together by now, but if they do miss the deadline they will still have time to apply for a new licence by November.’

‘The reality is that schools and local education authorities quickly got their act together and employed every conceivable strategy to avoid the ultimate, untenable situation, of turning pupils away.’

‘Other counties seem to have got their act together and provide each household with plastic crates.’

‘We showed a lot more commitment and one or two of the lads really got their act together and played with a good deal more passion.’

recover, recover control of oneself, regain control of oneself, recover control of one's emotions, regain control of one's emotions, recover one's composure, regain one's composure, recover one's calm, regain one's calm, recover one's self-control, regain one's self-control, get a grip on oneself, get a hold on oneself, take a grip on oneself, take a hold on oneself, pull oneself together, get over it, become one's old self, get better, cheer up, become cheerful, perk up